GARLAND, Texas — The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights announced Wednesday they have resolved a sexual harassment compliance review of Garland ISD.
The review was resolved with a resolution agreement to address Garland ISD's handling of sexual assault cases, including cases involving student and staff misconduct.
It was determined through the review that Garland ISD violated Title IX, a federal civil rights law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in education programs, by routinely delaying investigations of Title IX complaints when law enforcement was involved -- in some instances, even failing to conduct an investigation at all and relying on law enforcement findings.
“Students in Garland Independent School District deserve the safety and freedom from discrimination that Congress promised them in Title IX,” said Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon in a statement. “The Office for Civil Rights will continue to be here for them, monitoring the school district in the coming years to be sure it complies with Title IX.”
Officials say evidence revealed "shockingly inadequate" district responses under Title IX, including an incident where school video footage reportedly showed a student forcing another student to perform a sex act.
"While the harassing student was arrested and charged with felony rape, the district’s file showed no evidence that the district provided a prompt and equitable Title IX response to the harassed student, such as by providing her support or assessing and addressing the impact the harassment had on her," a statement from the OCR said.
Another case showed the district reportedly waited 26 days after completing an investigation to discipline two students, both male, who assaulted and harassed two female students daily for several weeks, waiting until law enforcement had arrested the two.
The resolution drafted from the review requires the district to revise and review its Title IX grievance procedures, develop and implement a centralized record-keeping system and provide training on Title IX, among other steps.
Garland ISD called the news released by the OCR "sensationalized" and that, while they agree that their students deserve safety and freedom from discrimination, they disagree they have failed to provide that environment for students.
"Student safety has always been and will remain a top priority of this District," Garland ISD said in a statement. "GISD has consistently followed the Texas Education and Penal Codes and removed students from campus when they are charged with sexual assault."
Garland ISD said students were addressed under its student discipline process and that they take the most aggressive approach allowed to respond to severe discipline issues, including sexual assault and sexual harassment.
"OCR contacted the District in 2020 to inquire about conducting an audit due to a lack of complaints from a large school district," the statement reads. "When pressed for the rationale, OCR admitted they were not responding to a complaint; rather, they had a charge to look into large school districts with nominal complaints, specifically in the school years 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20."
Garland ISD further said OCR did not commence the review until early 2022, 18 months before the release of this information. The district also said they had all staff trained on Title IX in August 2022 prior to the OCR's press release. The district also claimed OCR failed to interview all the witnesses the district requested and that they never shared any specific incidents cited in the summary of the findings letter, nor did they offer the district the opportunity to rebut allegations or provide additional information.
"Garland ISD remains committed to improving our processes and to complying with the resolution agreement," the statement concludes. "We are steadfast in our commitment to assuring the safety and well-being of every student, and will continue to enforce zero tolerance of situations that threaten a safe environment."
